The Apocalypse Survival Manual (Three Days Before Doomsday, I Stockpiled Billions) novel Chapter 74

Chapter 74

The deal was set.

The bike covered ten treatments. Nicole took it, but she didn’t let Victor come upstairs.

“Come back in an hour and a half.”

He carried the bike up while helping Gabrielle along. She was clearly in pain, but she still managed a kind smile.

“Thank you, young lady.”

“No need. I’m getting paid.”

Nicole didn’t bring Gabrielle inside and instead checked her right there in the hallway.

Lower back strain, plus a twist. It was nothing too serious, but injuries like that took time to heal and hurt a lot.

Nicole pulled out a cushioned bench from her storage space and set it down, letting Gabrielle lie face down.

Seeing how uncomfortable Gabrielle was, Nicole poured a little herbal liniment onto her hands and started working it in. Her technique wasn’t perfect, but it helped.

Once the muscles loosened, Nicole took out a set of silver needles for the needle therapy. She had practiced before and recently brushed up on it, so she was fairly confident. Her hands stayed steady.

Before long, Gabrielle, who hadn’t slept properly in days, drifted off. She didn’t wake until Nicole removed the needles. The pain had eased noticeably.

“I didn’t expect you to be this good,” Gabrielle said, surprised.

Back injuries took time to heal, especially in this damp weather, so Nicole reminded Gabrielle to rest properly.

She had painkillers and medicated patches in storage that would speed things up, but she didn’t offer them.

It wasn’t because she didn’t want to. Once word got out she had medicine, it would never end.

“Can I ask you something?” Gabrielle said.

She slipped off a gold bracelet and held it out.

“That bike means a lot to my grandson. Can I trade this instead?”

It was real gold. Probably worth a lot.

Even so, Nicole shook her head.

“It won’t heal in ten sessions, anyway. Once the flood’s over, you can pay and take the bike back.”

Only then did Gabrielle relax.

Their family wasn’t poor; they just weren’t used to keeping cash on hand.

By the time they finished, Victor had returned. Seeing his grandmother looking better, he thanked Nicole again.

After they left, Jeremy finally opened the door. “Not bad, Nicole. You’re making money as a doctor now.”

“It’s nothing serious. Just practice.”

Skills mattered, even now. That was why Nicole kept brushing up on her knowledge. If she ever ended up in a

1/2

Chocter

+15 Bchus

larger survivor base, this would be valuable.

Hughie sighed. “You picked the right field. I studied software. Totally useless now.”

“Maybe not,” Nicole said. “You never know.”

Watching her, Hughie felt the pressure. He turned and went to find Beatrice to train. If he couldn’t use his skills, at least he could get stronger.

The damp weather made everything feel worse.

Nicole worked out in the living room. Two hours later, she was drenched in sweat.

A knock came at the door. Cola ran over and pawed it open.

Zeph stepped in to pick him up. He paused when he saw Nicole practicing.

“You’re off a bit,” he said. “Your punch needs to come up higher.”

VERIFYCAPTCHA_LABELVerify